PHOENIX -- Two-time defending NL Manager of the Year Pat Murphy didn’t want to be anywhere other than Milwaukee. The Brewers didn’t want anyone else at the helm. Now the sides have reached an agreement to keep everybody happy.
The Brewers announced on Friday that Murphy, 67, had signed a multiyear extension. Terms were not announced, but multiple sources told MLB.com that it’s a new three-year deal for 2026-28 that includes a club option for '29. Murphy previously was entering the final year of his contract.
“I really didn’t have any doubt that this was going to work out, but I’m really grateful, really thankful,” said Murphy, who has been with the Brewers since 2016 and is heading into his third season as manager. “I really feel lucky driving to work every day, you know? I feel lucky this is what I do for a living. I feel lucky that someone says, ‘Yes, this is what we want you to do for our organization.’ … I know how tough it is to get here.
“With it comes responsibility. I didn’t need to be certain I was wanted. I didn’t need this [extension] to happen. But it probably is the best to get it done.”
If the option is exercised, it would carry the Syracuse, N.Y., native through his age-70 season, which seems right in his prime for one of the most unique coaches and characters of today’s game. The Brewers have won the past two of their three consecutive division titles with Murphy at the helm, having promoted him following Craig Counsell’s departure to manage the Cubs following the 2023 season.
Prior to that, Murphy was Counsell’s bench coach in Milwaukee from 2016-23. Prior to that, Murphy was Counsell’s college coach at Notre Dame, part of a long and illustrious career in the collegiate ranks that saw Murphy rack up 1,000 victories at four schools.
“It’s an incredible story. There should be a documentary on this guy,” said Brewers president of baseball operations Matt Arnold. “He’s won everywhere he’s ever been.”
Questions about how Murphy's style would translate to the Major League ranks were answered in 2024, when the Brewers bucked projections in the wake of trading Corbin Burnes to the Orioles to go from 92 wins in Counsell’s final season to 93 wins under Murphy, who became the first Milwaukee manager to win the Baseball Writers' Association of America’s Manager of the Year Award, an honor that dates back to 1983.
The 2025 season was even more successful. Once again expected to take a step back after trading All-Star closer Devin Williams to the Yankees, Murphy’s Brewers instead led the Majors and set a franchise record with 97 wins and a third consecutive division crown. They were under .500 as late as the final week of May but put together an eight-game winning streak that spanned the end of May and beginning of June, followed by an 11-game winning streak in July and a franchise-record 14-game winning streak in August to vault to the top of the standings, joining the 1982 Brewers as the only clubs in franchise history to lead the Majors in regular-season victories.
Then the Brewers snapped a streak of six consecutive losing series in the postseason, outlasting Counsell’s Cubs in a best-of-five NL Division Series before falling to the Dodgers in the NLCS.
“‘Manager’ is what the name is, right? You’re managing people, managing personalities,” said Christian Yelich, the Brewers’ longest-tenured position player and unofficial captain. “You have things you have to navigate throughout the season. You have to motivate guys, get everybody pulling in the same direction. He does a great job doing that.
“It’s hard to quantify. There’s nothing you can point to that says, ‘This had this much impact on the group.’ But, it does. Success starts from the top and works its way down.”
Murphy is always quick to credit his players, coaches and partners in the front office -- or, “the ivory tower,” as he calls it -- but he has surely played a role in the Brewers’ sustained success. Folksy and blunt with both praise and constructive criticism, and prone to producing baked goods from the pocket of his hoodie, he skippered a team that ranked third in the Majors in runs scored and second in ERA, while matching the franchise record by using 17 starting pitchers.
They’ll try to run it back in 2026. And they won’t face any more questions about the manager’s job security.
"Everybody loves Murph; there's no doubt," Brewers principal owner Mark Attanasio said earlier this week. "But we don't talk about contracts. We do talk about stability. We've had a huge amount of stability here, and that's the goal."